Black Lip Mother of Pearl Round Earrings

Today is Black Friday, the mother of all shopping days in my country of origin where business profits turn from red to black and bank accounts from black to red. Someone in the mid-sixties must have had one hell of a sense of humor to time this day to fall directly after Thanksgiving. One day Americans join with their families in (mock) appreciation of their conquested homeland and the next they begin an altogether too similar conquest, only this time it's consumer goods they're after instead of arable land. During the year's most populated shopping extravaganza, malls across the nation flood at the crack of dawn with parents who are so under the influence of the holiday spirit that they'll fight to the death over the year's Tickle Me Elmo equivalent. Karl Marx was right about history repeating itself.

After working for a year slinging ice cream and coffee, I got hired at sixteen to sling records—well, cassettes and CDs—in a seasonal position at my mall's Sam Goody. The immovable start date was Black Friday. After the holiday stint was complete, I was granted a permanent place in the glow of florescent lights and Top 40 hits, which led to my working at a snarky, indie record shop—think High Fidelity—through college and the subsequent solidification of a certain hipster snobbery. Try as I might to be aesthetically accommodating, I am very hard to please.

Pleasantly nontraditional, Zeba's well-crafted handmade jewelry is made in Detroit for finicky people like me. No doubt this is, in part, because the pieces' design influence comes from Sholeh Mesbah's fourteen years of diverse artistic experience. From water color to stained class to architecture to metal working techniques, Mesbah brings a variety of skills to her eclectic array of (mostly) one of a kind pieces.

Having already fallen for one pair of stunning pearl earrings, I am now experimenting with polyamory in the wake of the addition of the Black Lip Mother of Pearl Round Earrings to my jewelry box. A smooth ring of smokey pearl with just a hint shimmery gleam is attached to a silver ear wire with Bali spacer beads to complete a look that is straightforward and versatile. The sturdily crafted circular pair are so light that I frequently forget I am wearing them until I hear the ubiquitous gasp followed by, "I love those earrings!"

Although typically given to modesty, I have no problem promoting the work of others, so I confidently reply, "They're great, right?! And with the holidays coming up..." I know, the "sell" might be a little much, but in this corporate dominated scene, feminists have got to give props where we can to talented entrepreneurial women who are out there doing their thing.

Listen, skip the one-stop shop this year and personalize your gift selections from the comfort of your own home (or work) computer. The new Norah Jones album isn't all that great anyway, and neither is a visit to the mall.

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